Furniture seat



L. D. LICHTY FURNITURE SEAT Dec. 15, 1931.

Filed May 13, 1950 A ATTORNEY,

Patented Dec. 15, 1931 PATENT OFFICE LUTHER D. LICH'IY, OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA FURNITURE SEAT Application filed May 13,

sign of the frame of the chair, the arrangement and action of the upholstery springs not differing materially from that present in chairs of other types. a

In such old furniture seat constructions the customary practice was, and is, to support the upholstery springs by means of special burlap webbing, so interlaced and secured to the bottom of the seat frame as to support the upholstery springs which were connected thereby by being sewed thereto.

The use of rigid wooden slats nailed to the seat frame or supported therefrom by cleats, was sometimes resorted to as a support for the upholstery springs, but this construction has not proven satisfactory and is not extensively used. It has also been proposed to use a fabric sheet, or a fabricated Wire frame resiliently supported by means of springs under tension connected about the edges thereof and secured to the bars of the frame but such construction has a hammock effect which is not desirable. I

With all of these old constructions above referred to, all portions of the seat have the same degree of resiliency as other corresponding portions thereof. a

With the above conditions in mind, I have provided a seat structure wherein the back portion of the seat has a relatively greater resiliency than the front portion thereof, so

that a person, when occupying the article of furniture, will automatically assumea more comfortable posture than will result from the presence of aspring seat wherein the portion adjacent the back has the'same,

1930, Serial No. 451,913.

or less, resiliency than the portion toward the front, sides or middle thereof.

In a furniture seat embodying the invention, I employ a rigid upholstery spring support pivotally connected with the front bar or rail of the chair frame, the support being free to turn about such pivotal connections and being supported adjacent the back bar or rail of the frame by substantially vertically extending expansion springs resisting such pivotal movement to a limited extent, but permitting such movement under conditions which willmo-re fully appear hereinafter. i In the practice of the invention, I provide special fittings by means of which therigid upholstery spring supports may be connected with the bar or rail of the chair framefor the purpose of facilitating the mounting of the seat spring structure in the frame of the chairand avoiding likelihood of such a disarrangement of parts as a result of the formation of a sag in the seat, or the breaking down of the entire seat structure.

By the construction of my invention, notwithstanding the use of rigid upholstery spring supports, it is impossible to fully collapse such springs in a manner to cause an uncomfortable jar to the occupant; even when the springs are overloaded. Furthermore, nothwithstanding a normal differential compression of the upholstery springs from the front toward theback' of the seat, there is no tendency toward the sagging of the seat toward the back, since the construction and arrangement of parts is such that immediatesist fleXure excepting when said upholstery springs are subjected to an abnormally heavy load, and means suspending said springs from said rear bar; and in such other novel features of construction and combination of parts as are hereinafter set forth and described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims hereto appended.

Referring to the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a View of a sofa or settee, partly broken away to disclose the spring seat structure Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 upon a larger scale;

Fig. 3 is a condensed view showing the back and front bars, the rigid upholstery spring supporting member :and the manner of mounting, said view being similar to Fig. 2 but upon a larger scale;

Fig. 4 is a cross section through the slat showing one way of pivotally connecting the slat to the front bar or rail;

Fig. 5 is a similar view showing themanner of supporting the free end of the slat from the back bar or rail; and

Fig. 6 is a view of an embodiment of the invention, employing a plate or slatin lieu of slats.

- Like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, it is applied to a sofa or settee 10, although it is obvious that'except for width, the same construction would be present in a chair- V 7 The article of furniture embodies in the seat structure, a seat frame having a front bar 11 and a back bar 12. The construction shown in the drawings-is adapted for use with furniture of the overstuffed type provided with separate removable cushions 13. These cushions are ordinarily provided with what is known as cushion springs, not shown 'in the drawings as being immaterial to the invention. i

The term upholstery spring as used herein is employed to distinguish the compressible springs embodied in the seat from the cushion springs above referred to.

In furniture of the type to which my invention relates, it is desirable that the seat structure adjacent the back bar 12 possess relatively higher resiliency than the portion thereof adjacent the front bar 11, so that when a person sits well back in the sofa or chair, the localization of theweight toward the back bar or rail 12 will give the seat a 'decided downward and backward tilt, throwing the body toward the back of the chair or sofa, :the front portion of the seat remaining comparatively firm and immovable.

. In securing the desired ei'i'ect,fI provide a rigid upholstery spring supporting member consisting of a plurality of thick, wood slat 141, upon which the upholstery springs 15 are supported. These springs are of the usual construction and are held under com pression by a top fabric sheet 16, secured to the upper bars or rails 17 of the seat frame in the usual manner.

The slats 1 1 are mounted to have pivotal movement about a horizontal axis upon the front bar 11 in any desired manner. In the drawings, I have shown this pivotal support as consisting of an ordinary hinge 18, one of the leaves of which is secured to the bottom of the slat, and the other leaf of which is secured adjacent the bottom of the front bar or rail 11. This affords an effective and economical pivotalsupport, but if the factory system in the manufacture of the furniture is such as .to make the use of other forms of pivotal connections preferable, such may be employed, it being essential, however, that the front end of the rigid support 14 shall have pivotal movement. about a horizontal axis so .as to maintain the front of the supportin substantially the same plane at all times, and permit the depression of the free and rearward portion of the support.

In order to secure the operation, I provide means affording a vertically yieldable support for the rear ends of the "rigid upholstery spring supporting members consisting of one or more expansion springs'19, one end of which is connected in relation to the back bar or rail 12, and the other end of which is secured to a channelled member inclosing the end of the slat 14:. The member from which the springis suspended, consists of a fitting 20, having a face flange 21 abutting snugly the inner face of the bar or rail 12. Extending from the flange 21, inwardly of the bar or rail, is anangular sec tion 22 having a depending front flange 23 provided-with openings as 24 to receive-the hooked upper end or top 25 of the spring 19. The number of openings 24 is determined by the number of springs 19 it is desired to use, or to permit variation in the number of p i s- I This fitting also has a second angular section 26, extending over the top of the bar or rail 12 and having a depending tongue 27 adapted to fit in a groove or mortise 28 formed in the top of the bar or rail 12. The fitting 20 may be secured snugly against the baror rail by means of a nail or screw as 29 passing through the face flange 21.

The use of the tongue and groove or mortise 28 permits theconvenient locating of the fitting 20, and since the bar or rail 12 is ordinarily made of hard wood, also aids in preventing the toppling of the fitting, from loads applied to the springs 19 which are desired mode of spaced away from the bar or rail 12 by the angular section 22.

i Thelower end or bottom of each spring 19 is connected with its slat 14 by means of a channelledfittin'g 30 having a lower horizontal side flange 31 upon which the slat is adapted to rest, and an upper horizontal side flange 32 adapted to engage the top of the slat, as shown more particularly in Figs. 2 and 3.

The bottom of the channelled fitting 30 ex- .tends vertically and abuts against the end of the slat, and may be secured firmly in this position in any desired manner, as by means of a screw or nail 33.

In order to minimize likelihood of escape of the fitting 30 from the end of the slat, I provide the lower side flange 31 with an upwardly extending tongue 34 adapted to enter a groove or mortise 35 in the bottom of the slat. The bottom of the fitting 30 is provided with an upwardly extending flange 36 having openings therein adapted to receive the bent lower end 37 of the springs 19.

By the construction above described, the back of the rigid support 14, or the portion thereof adjacent the back rail or bar 12 is resiliently supported by means of suspension springs which will permit the support to have pivotal movement about the pivotal connection 18 between the other end thereof and the front bar or rail 11.

If desired, instead of using a plurality of slats, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, a single wood plate or slab 38 as shown in Fig. 5lmay be used. I prefer, however, to use the s ats.

The operation of the herein described seat is substantially as follows In assembling the seat, the metallic fittings 23 are mounted in the desired location upon the back rail 12, the tongue 27 of each fitting being seated in the groove or mortise 28 and being slid along the back rail until the desired position is reached. When the fitting is properly located, the nail or screw 29 is driven into the bar or rail 12, thus holding the face flange 21 firmly against the inner face of said bar or rail. The pivotal support 18 is then connected with the slat 14 or plate 38, and the channelled fitting 30 is applied to the other end of the slat or the opposite edge of the plate or slab with the tongue 34 seated in the groove or mortise 35 and the top flange 32 bearing upon the top of the slat or the plate or slab.

Before mounting the pivotal fitting in relation to the bar 11, it may be preferred to position and secure the compressible upholstery springs 15 upon the rigid support. After mounting the rigid support upon the front rail 11, the end or top 25 of each spring 19 may be hooked into an opening 24, and the lower end 37 of said springs may be hooked in the openings in the flange 36.

The length of the spring 19 is such as to preferably maintain the slat 14, or the plate or slab 38 upon a substantially horizontal plane.

The ma-nnerof assembling the device may vary in different factories.

The nails or screws 29 and 33 are used mainly to prevent displacement of the fittings longitudinally of the bar or rail 12, or the escape of the slat 14 from the channelled end fitting 30. These nails or screws, however, have the further function of relieving the woodwork to which the fittings are secured, from unnecessary strains which might lead to the splitting thereof.

The grooves or mortises 28 and 35, in their co-operation with the tongues or flanges 21 and 24, serve to prevent play between the fittings and the bar 12 and the slats 14 respectively. They have little or no effect in preventing toppling of the fittings in relation to the bar 12 or the slats 14 sin'cethe vertically extending flanges 21 and top flange 26 of the fitting 20, and the channelled fitting 30 and its side flanges 31 and 32 present angularly dis-' posed surfaces of large area engaging the bar or rail 12 and inclosing the end of the slat 14, which checks any tendency-of the fittings to topple. The tongues 27 and34, however, are a safeguard supplementing the action of the nails or screws 29 and 33 in maintaining the fittings in their established position in relation to the bar or rail 12, and the slats 14 and the plate or slab 38.

' With the parts 'so assembled, the entire seat structure is more or less rigidly supported adjacent the bar or rail 11, the only flexure at that point being that of the adjacent springs 15. The portion of the seat structure adjacent the bar or rail 12, however, is flexibly adjacent the rear bar or rail 12, may expand to a variable extent as compared with the springs upon other slats, according to the point of application of the load to the seat.

A sagging of the seat, however, is prevented even after long continued use, since immediately that the springs 15 and 19 are relieved from a load, their reflex action will restore all of the parts to their normal position.

Experience has shown that the springs 19 sustain the load applied to the springs 15 unless these springs are subjected to an abnormally heavy load. The springs 19, however, are acted upon as a result of the aggregate tension of all of the springs 15 carried by the rigid support suspended by means of said springs. The springs 19'w1ll always have a cushioning actlon. If, however, the springs 15 are subjected to an excessive load, the tension developed asa result of the collapsing of the spring under this load will exceed the normal tension of the springs 19, and thus divide the cushioning effect adjacent the bar or rail 12 particularly, between the springs 15 and the springs 19, and avoid that ar which will result from the total collapsing of the springs 15.

By an arrangement of upholstery springs 15 and suspension springs: 19, coacting in the manner described, overloading of the former is prevented, and likelihood of weakening or breakage thereof, as a result of such overloading, is eliminated.

- As the springs 19 expand, the slat 14 or the plate or slab 38 with which said springs cooperate is permitted to rock about the pivotal connection 18, thus giving a backward tilt to the seat in the manner above referred to.

Ordinarily, two springs only are used with each pair of fittings 20 and 30, and this is desirable as tending to avoid lateral tilting of the slat 14. If a plate 38 be used, however,

only one spring need be used with each fitting,

accumulated tension of all of the springs 15,

carried by the rigid support, willtend to flex or expand the springs 19, the vertical arrangement of this spring allowing free pivotal movement of the slab 1 1 and relieving those springs, toward the front of the seatparticularly, from excessive compression. In other words, there is a tendency toward the concentration of the load toward the rear ofthe seat, and this concentration of the load will tend to compress the springs 15 toward the bar or rail 12 to a greater extent than similar springs toward the front bar or rail 11. This increased tension of the rearward springs tends to localize the load adjacent the springs 19 and cause the tilting of the slats in the manner above referred to. hen a portion of the load has been absorbed by these springs 1.9, the tension of the springs more toward the front of the seat will be relieved some by the downward movement of the slats 14.

Immediately upon the load being removed from the seat, the springs 19 raise each slat 14 to its former horizontal position and develop in the springs 15 their normal tension. V

' Since the support 1st or 38, even after long continued use, will not be distorted in any way, it is obvious that sagging of the seat cannot occur, since those loads resulting in such sagging, when webbing is used, merely tension the springs 19 which are not permanently affected.

It is not my intention to limit the invention to the precise details of construction shown in the accomanying drawings, it being apparent that such may be varied Without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. I

I believe it to be broadly new, however, to provide in a furniture seat, a rigid supporting member for the upholstery springs which is pivotally connected to the front rail of the frame of the article of furniture and issuspended adjacent the rear bar or rail of the frame by means of vertically extending expansion springs so as to permit the portion of the spring structure adjacent said back bar or rail 12 to act in a manner to tilt the entire seat structure toward the back of the article, as distinguished from a structure in which all portions of the seat'are capable of having similar uniform vertical movement.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to have protected by Letters Patent, is

1. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having front and rear bars, rigid upholsteryspring supporting members mounted to have pivotal movement about a horizontal axis upon said front'bar, compressible upholstery springs secured to said rigid sup porting member, substantially vertically extending expansion springs connected with said supporting member, and a metal fitting secured to the rear bar of said seat frame, having a face flange adapted to abut against said bar, an angular section having a depending front flan e, provided with openings therein by means of which said springs may be attached thereto, projecting from the top of said face plate inwardly of said frame,

and a second, section projecting from the top of said face plate extending over and in engaging relation to the top of the bar of the frame, and means holding said face flange 1n .said abutting relation to said bar.

springs may be attached thereto, projecting I from the top of said face plate inwardly of said frame, and a second section projecting from the top of said face plate extending over the top of the bar of the frame having a downwardly extending tonguefsaid bar bcing mortised along the top to receive said deending tongue, and means holding said face flange in said abutting relation to said bar.

3. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having front and rear bars, rigid upholstery spring supporting members mounted to have pivotal movement about a horizontal axis upon said front bar, compressible upholstery springs secured to said rigid suporting member, substantially vertically extending expansion springs, means suspending said springs from said rear bar, and a channelled fitting embracing the rear edge of said supporting member, with the bottom of the channel of said fitting in abutting relation to said edge, means maintaining the bottom of said fitting in such abutting relation, and means whereby the bottom of said expansion springs may be attached to said channelled fittings.

4. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having front and rear bars, rigid upholstery spring supporting members mounted to have pivotal movement about a horizontal axis upon said front bar, compressible upholstery springs secured to said rigid supporting member, substantially vertically extending expansion springs, means suspending said springs from said rear bar, and a channelled fitting embracing the rear edge of said supporting member, with the bottom of the channel of said fitting in abutting relation to said edge, means maintaining the bottom of said fitting in such abutting relation, and an upwardly extending flange having openings therein to receive the lower ends of said expansion springs.

5. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having front and rear bars, rigid upholstery spring supporting members mounted to have pivotal movement about ahorizontal axis upon said front bar, compres sible upholstery springs secured to said rigid supporting member, substantially vertically extending expansion springs, means suspending said springs from said rear bar, and a channelled fitting embracing the rear edge of said supporting member, with the bottom of the channel of said fitting in abutting relation to said edge, means maintaining the bottom of said fitting in such abutting relation, the side flange engaging the bottom of said member having an upwardly directed tongue, said member being mortised to receive said tongue, and an upwardly extending flange having openings therein to receive the lower ends of said expansion springs.

6. A furniture seatembodying therein a seat frame having front andrear bars, rigid upholstery spring supporting members mounted to have pivotal movement about a horizontal axis upon said front bar, compressible upholstery springs secured to said rigid supporting member, substantially vertically extending expansion springs, a metal fitting secured to the rear bar of said seat frame, havin a face flange adapted to abut against said bar, an angular section having adepending front flange, provided with openings therein by means of which said springs may be attached thereto, projecting from the top of said face plate inwardly of said frame, a second section projecting from the top of said face plate extending over the top of the bar of the frame having a downwardly extending tongue, said bar being mortised to receive said depending tongue, and means holding said face flange in said abutting relation to said bar, and a channelled fitting embracing the rear edge of said supporting member, with the bottom of the channel of said fitting in abutting relation to said edge, means maintaining the bottom of said fitting in such abutting relation, the side flange engaging the bottom of said member having an upwardly directed tongue, said member being mortised to receive said tongue, and an upwardly extending flange having openings therein to receive the lower ends of said expansion springs.

7. A furniture seat embodying therein a seat frame having front and rear bars, a plurality of rigid slats, means whereby each of said slats is pivotally mounted upon said front bar to have movement about a horizontal axis, compressible upholstery springs secured to each slat, and means yieldably supporting the end of each slat adjacent said rear bar, comprising'a metal fitting secured to the rear bar of said seat frame, having a face flange adapted to abut against said bar, an angular section having a depending front flange, provided with openin s therein, projecting from the top of said 'ace plate inwardly of said frame, a second section pro-' j ecting from the top of said face plate extending over the top ofthe bar of the frame having a downwardly extending tongue, said bar being mortised to receive said depending tongue, and means holding said face flange in said abutting relation to said bar, and a channelled fitting embracing the rear edge of a slat, with the bottom of the channel of said fitting in abutting relation to said edge, means maintaining the bottom of said fitting in such abutting relation, the side flange engaging the bottom of said slat having an upwardly directed tongue, said slat being mortised to receive said tongue, an upwardly extending flange having openings therein, and an expansion spring connected with the depending front flange of the metal fitting attached to the rear bar and the upwardly extending flange'of said channelled fitting. In witness whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature, this 9th day of May, 1930.

LUTHER D. LICHTY. 

